


Fighting Spirit

by tale_to_tell



Series: I make myself sad but then happy (angst with a happy ending) [5]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Hospital, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Avengers Family, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hurt Steve Rogers, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Natasha Romanov Is a Good Bro, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pre-Serum Steve Rogers, Protective Bucky Barnes, Protective Steve Rogers, Sam Wilson Is a Good Bro, Sick Steve, Slow To Update, Steve Rogers Feels, Tony Is a Good Bro
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-17
Updated: 2019-12-16
Packaged: 2021-02-26 05:21:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,595
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21818071
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tale_to_tell/pseuds/tale_to_tell
Summary: Steven Grant Rogers was not expected to live past a day or two. He was so small, and so so sickly, and poor Sarah Rogers was devastated by the predicted outcome. She loved her son with all her heart, of course, as did her husband Joseph.Steven Grant Rogers lived past two days, and then a week, and then a month, and then a year, much to everyone's astonishment. Yes, Steven Grant Rogers was a fighter. He kept on living, even when Sarah and Joseph could not. They passed much too early, and then Steve had no one, except for some man who Sarah had named Steve's guardian (even though Steve had never even heard of this "Nicholas Fury" guy before).It didn't matter much, anyways. Steve was admitted into a long-term hospital ward before he could properly meet his guardian. HE was suffering from almost everything, but Steve planned on living. He wasn't going to go without a fight, and nothing would break him down.James Buchanan (Bucky) Barnes entered his life one day, admitted into long-term care because of an osteosarcoma. He's cold and angry always, and Steve wants to change that. His friends think him crazy, but Steve knows that behind Bucky's frigid mask is kind, if a bit broken, soul.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes & Steve Rogers, James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers, Steve Rogers & Avengers Team, Steve Rogers & Natasha Romanov, Steve Rogers & Sam Wilson, Steve Rogers & Tony Stark
Series: I make myself sad but then happy (angst with a happy ending) [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1560973
Kudos: 17





	Fighting Spirit

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Arrhythmia](https://archiveofourown.org/works/6595858) by [agentsimmons](https://archiveofourown.org/users/agentsimmons/pseuds/agentsimmons). 



> I don't own any Marvel stuff
> 
> also !!! I really don't know medical stuff so pls excuse my mistakes

Steve watched as the nurse took his blood sample for the thousandth time.

"Almost done," the nurse said (much too happily), "almost done." Steve barely refrained from rolling his eyes. He had to remind himself that this woman was just trying to help him, and she did not deserve his scorn.

"Thank you, sweetie." She said. "That's all for now."

"Thanks." Steve mumbled, already turning onto his side to look out the hospital window. He'd been here almost two months already, and there was no end in sight. Steve had been admitted into New York Shield Hospital just days after his parents had passed. The shock and devastation had completely destroyed his immune system, and he'd become horribly ill after hearing of their deaths.

As per Sarah and Joseph Rogers' will, Steve was now under the custody of a man named Nicholas Fury. Mr. Fury visited Steve two or three times a week, but only briefly. They were never properly introduced and Steve was still grieving, and so it was very awkward. Steve appreciated the effort. He'd been confused at first, as to why his parents had made Fury his guardian. Fury had explained during his first visit that he was the Chief of Surgery and a board member of Shield Hospital, and that was how he'd met Steve's mother, who had been a nurse. Apparently, Fury and two of his colleagues were known for taking in underprivileged children in need of medical care, and Sarah and Joseph had requested Fury take Steve in, should anything happen to them. Fury seemed like a nice guy, if a bit distant and serious. He'd gotten Steve in as a charity case (as much as Steve despised that), and Steve would never have to worry about medical bills again.

Steve sighed and turned onto his back. He'd be staying in the hospital for the foreseeable future. His asthma alone was bad enough for him to be hospitalized, and Steve had many other ailments. The long-term ward, named the Stark Long-Term Teens' and Young Adults' Care Ward (a mouthful) because of billionaire and inventor Howard Stark's _very_ sizable donation, was as comfortable as any hospital ward could be. Steve knew he was lucky when it came to his hospital stay, as the Stark Ward had the best equipment and staff members. Howard Stark's son, Anthony Stark, was often admitted, and this was the cause of the donation. So, Steve really shouldn't be complaining about his hospital stay.

Steve looked around his room aimlessly. His room was larger than any other hospital rooms he'd stayed in before. There were two beds and a table in the corner, and a doorway to his own restroom. Steve had, briefly, shared his room with a guy named Brock Rumlow. Brock was a jerk, and he hadn't stayed long. Steve was supposed to be getting a new roommate soon, and, honestly, anyone would be better than Brock.

"Hey, Rogers." Steve glanced up towards his doorway. Natasha Romanov, admitted for problems relating to her type I diabetes, was leaning casually against his doorway. Steve forced himself to sit up, ignoring the pain in his chest.

"Natasha," he greeted quietly, then waited for her to say more.

"You coming with us to the common area?" She asked. Howard Stark had gone all out when directing the construction of the long-term ward, insisting there be an area for patients to hang out together.

"Who's all going?" Steve questioned, shifting in his bed.

"Everyone." Natasha answered vaguely. "C'mon, Rogers, you never come out." That was mostly true, he often felt too sick to wander very far. Steve chewed on his lip thoughtfully, then gave a quick and decisive nod. Natasha smirked, obviously pleased with herself, and waited for Steve to climb out of bed, put on some slippers, and slowly hobble over towards her.

"It's movie night." Natasha said as they walked down the halls. "Nurse Carter is going to pick some Disney movie." Steve made a noncommittal noise in response, using the wall to help himself stay upright. Natasha eyed him warily.

"Do you need a wheelchair?" She asked, an elegant eyebrow raising.

"No," Steve answered, teeth gritted. Natasha looked like she wanted to roll her eyes, and Steve ignored her. He wasn't _that_ sick. Natasha led him to the common area, and Steve took a breath in preparation before entering.

"Capsicle, how kind of you to grace us with your presence." Anthony Stark said silkily, raising a glass of, what Steve assumed was, water. Stark's son was only 19, and they _were_ in a hospital, but Anthony seemed to be the type to get whatever he wanted (legal or not). He gave everyone weird nicknames (what did 'Capsicle' mean anyways?).

"Stark." Steve said cooly. He maneuvered his way to sit on one of the couches that was still unoccupied.

"Glad to see you, Steve." Sam Wilson greeted. Steve offered a small smile in return. Sam was actually a nice guy to be around. Steve took a moment to observe the room. He knew everyone here. He didn't leave his room often, but when he did he at least made an effort to befriend the other patients. Besides Sam, Natasha, and Anthony (who went by Tony, as Steve had to constantly remind himself), there were four others in the common area: Bruce Banner, Scott Lang, Peter Parker, and Clint Barton. Steve liked them well enough. Bruce was a quiet dude, but kindhearted. Clint and Scott were kind of goofy, and Peter was... enthusiastic.

"Hey, Cap!" Peter said excitedly, waving from where he sat at one of the tables. Steve suppressed a groan. Clearly Tony's ridiculous nicknames had rubbed off on Peter. The kid was the youngest of the group, only 15. He was supposed to be turning 16 soon, but still. He really looked up to everyone else, especially Tony and, surprisingly, Steve.

"Hey, Peter." Steve said. "How are you?"

"I'm great!" Peter chirped. "How are you?"

"I'm fine." Steve answered mildly, ignoring how Natasha rolled her eyes. What did she know anyways? Peter went on to chat about some sort of academic program he was part of. Steve had never been the academic type, instead he'd focused more on art. Steve tried to listen, he wasn't an idiot, but most of it went way above his head. Bruce looked entranced.

"Kid's too smart for his age." Sam remarked, taking a seat next to Steve.

"Yeah," Steve agreed, huffing out a laugh. Peter was young, especially compared to the others. Because Howard Stark had made such a generous donation, he'd set some terms that otherwise would not have been made. For one, the Stark Ward was for teenagers and young adults, rather than children only. That was very unusual, as far as Steve was concerned, because it included adults and only a specific range of children. The youngest patient had to be at least 15 (Peter just barely made the cut), and the cut off age was twenty. Steve figured it was because Tony had been diagnosed with some sort of heart condition when he was fifteen. Originally, it was supposed to have a cut off age at 17, so every patient was still a minor, but it had extended as Tony grew older. Steve wasn't at all certain how it worked out legally, but he did know that minors would not be rooming with anyone 18 or older, and there was a tighter monitoring and security presence. Steve was 17, so he had a few years of stay before he had to be moved to the normal long-term ward for adults.

"Heard you're getting a roommate." Sam said. "Looking forward to it?"

"Yeah." Steve shrugged. "Whoever it is, they can't be worse than Brock." Sam's eyes darkened and he crossed his arms.

"Fuck that guy." He said savagely, and Steve blinked in surprise. He'd known everyone knew how much of a jerk Brock had been, but he hadn't really expected them to care so much, especially since he was gone.

"Yeah." Steve agreed blandly. Sam cast him a pensive look, then, hesitantly, clapped Steve's shoulder.

"Hey, man," he started, "if you ever need to talk about anything, I'm here for you." Steve stared at him for a second, taken aback.

"Thanks, I'll keep that in mind." He said sincerely. Sam smiled warmly and settled back in the couch.

"Can we start already?" Stark whined, leaning his chair back precariously.

"Tony," A British accented voice said sternly, and Nurse Carter appeared in the entrance way. Tony sat up suddenly in his chair, almost causing it to fall over.

"Aunt Carter!" He exclaimed. "You look great!" Nurse Carter rolled her eyes and entered the room. Steve admired her, especially because she could invoke fear in the cocky Tony Stark.

"Who's ready for movie night?" She asked, walking towards the television.

"I am!" Peter said, moving quickly from the table and jumping over the back of the couch to land on the cushions. He had so much energy.

"First, we've got some introductions." Nurse Carter gestured towards the entrance way, and everyone looked back. Another person had entered the room, a boy around Steve's age. He had dark hair and bright blue eyes, and Steve swallowed.

"Bucky Barnes." The guy said gruffly, eyes glancing around the room. They lingered on Steve a tad longer than what Steve would judge to be normal.

"Hey," Natasha hissed, leaning over to speak into Steve's ear. "That hot guy is your roommate, right?" Steve inwardly swore. The universe enjoyed making Steve's life difficult.

**Author's Note:**

> yeah again I have no idea how medical and law stuff works (literally my only example would be like grey's anatomy or something) so hopefully it's realistic enough  
> this IS an au though, soooooo I get to make my own rules and my rules say that this works   
> hopefully they're not too ooc... let me know what you guys think!


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